Councilwoman Bette Arial speaks to Susi Lafaele and Gregg McArthur on Thursday after a council meeting at the St. George City Office.

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With some calling it the most difficult decision they've had to make in city government dealings, four members of the St. George City Council selected Bette Arial from a field of 24 applicants to join them on the council and fill the vacancy left by recently elected Mayor Jon Pike.

Arial, a retiree who lives downtown, has been active for the past two years with the conservative Sutherland Institute think tank as well as Utah Manufacturers Association. She also has more than two decades worth of service in various elected and appointed positions, experience that council members said would make ...